Nutritionists rise up against Christian Bale's diet

An apple, a single coffee and a can of tuna were the only three foods that actor Christian Bale (Haverfordwest, UK, 1974) proved throughout the day. That's how it was for four months. time when, by requirements of the script, lost a total of 28 kilos. Lose weight an average of seven kilos a month. "It's normal to lose two to four kilos a month. Slimming Seven in four weeks is reckless because it can cause heart and gastrointestinal problems, "says ICON Medicadiet's nutrition specialist Álvaro Sánchez. The actor fell to the 50 kilos of weight and fell into an evident state of malnutrition that earned him to play Trevor Reznik, a factory worker suffering from severe insomnia in the engineer (Brad Anderson, 2004).

This has not been the only radical change that has starred Bale. Just a few months after finishing the filming of Brad Anderson, Bale swelled to proteins (lean meat, fish, legumes...) and fattened 50 kilos of pure muscle to get into the costume of Batman in Batman Begins (Christopher Nolan, 2005). This time the actor doubled the weight of the one who left and reached the 100 kilos. To achieve this, he pulled a hypercaloric diet of 4,000 calories a day – normal for an adult man is to ingest about 2,500 calories – which allowed him to recover muscle mass quickly. "Going from the 250 calories per day that Bale consumed during the filming of the machinist at 4,000 has many risks. The main one is that they increase the chances of cardiovascular accidents, "says Álvaro Sánchez.

"Losing seven kilos in four weeks is reckless because it can cause heart and gastrointestinal problems"

Álvaro Sánchez, nutritionist

The followers of the English actor's filmography will know that this was not his last transformation either. Another film, The Fighter (David O. Russell, 2012), led him to relapse. This time he lost 44 kilos to play Dicky Eklund, a conflicting boxer and eager for illegal substances. A few months later, Bale returned to give Hollywood what he expected of him. Another shocking change of weight. He went from 66 kilos to weighing 110 kilos. 54 extra kilos that served him to take one of the main roles of another film by David O. Russell: The Great American Scam (2014).

What is the trick of Christian Bale to carry out these losses and weight gains in record time? "Many actors ask me to advise you on how to change your weight. The truth is that I can not help because I do not know if what I do is good for everyone else. There's really not much secrecy in it. One eats more or less, according to the needs of the film, "declared the actor.

Is there any way to carry out transformations such as those of Christian Bale in a way that does not jeopardize health? Nutritionist Álvaro Sánchez is clear: it is very difficult to carry out these fluctuations of weight in a healthy way. "For my consultation have passed low weight actors asking me to prepare a plan to lose several kilos more because they demanded it in a certain film. And I refused. For me health is ahead of any aesthetic criterion, "says ICON Sanchez.

A close example. The actor Mario Casas (A Coruña, 1986), owner of one of the most envied and desired physicists in Spain, fattened 10 kilos eating unmeasured and white Filipinos. Houses, which was immersed in the filming of under the skin of Wolf, Opera Prima of the Realizer and screenwriter Samu Fuentes, remember that they were happy days. "Fattening was a marvel. It is the best thing that can happen to you, because in the end it is eating, drinking and not doing sport, "the actor confessed in the Anthill.

However, this good time ended soon and an ordeal began. After the filming of the tape of Fuentes embarked on the recording of the photographer of Mauthausen, film where he plays Francisco Boix, photographer who portrayed the Spanish Civil war and witnessed the horrors of Nazi extermination camps. This time he had to get rid of 22 kilos in just four months: the 10 he had won for under the skin of the wolf and 12 he lost to interpret his character from the photographer Mauthausen. "He meant to be starving, not to eat almost and to see you in the consumptive mirror. There it was that women nothing, there frightened them, "joked on the TV show.

From left to right, the weight changes according to the redajes of Christian Bale: ' The Machinist ', ' Batman begins ', ' The Fighter ' and ' The Great American scam '.

When houses dropped from the 70 kilos, the nutritionist who was helping him lose weight was planted. "My doctor told me to stop, that I could no longer go down. But I decided to go on, "the actor clarified today. He also acknowledged that he entered a dangerous loop that could lead to serious psychological problems. "There comes a time when you look in the mirror and you look just like two months ago, when you weighed 8 kilos more. That's when I decided I couldn't keep losing weight, "he added.

Judit Lopez explains that severe diets can lead to serious psychological disorders. Anxiety and obsession with food and weight is one of the most common, but not the only. "There is a loss of concentration and the mood becomes snappy and depressive," he says. In addition, the nutritionist confirms to ICON the incompatibility of following a miracle diet – those that promise, be fulfilled or not, a drastic weight loss in a short period of time – with maintaining a healthy social life.

"People who undergo restrictive diets tend to become obsessive and monothematic. This hinders social relations and makes them become more introverted, "says the specialist. Opinion shared by the actor. "Watching people eat is the hardest thing of all. See your friends who go out to eat and you can not... Society excludes you. I locked myself in the house, in my world. I couldn't go out, or have a drink, "said Casas a Toni Garrido on the radio show today (the SER).

Nutritionist Tracy Lockwood, a specialist who carries the nutrition plans of many Hollywood stars, confessed to HuffPost that the key to transforming the body in a healthy way is to do so by eating quality food. "Those who consume unhealthy food to fatten up are doing everything wrong. When my famous clients want to gain weight quickly to get a role, I prepare a nutrition plan that increases their caloric intake without causing a metabolic disturbance, "said Lockwood to the American publication. What the nutritionist recommends in these cases is that three strong meals are made for breakfast, lunch and dinner. "It is about doubling the amount of protein (chicken, legumes or salmon) and taking three daily portions of whole grains and complex carbohydrates, such as quinoa. I also recommend taking foods with healthy fats like avocado, almond butter and hazelnuts, "says the nutritionist.

The actor characterised by Dick Cheney in a scene of ' Vice '.

When evaluating diets like those followed by Christian Bale, who said that to fatten all he did was to swell to cakes, Lockwood explains that although this can work to catch weight, it is very harmful to health. "The intake of foods loaded with calories, fats and fatty oils is not only dangerous to your health in the short term, but it can also wreak havoc on your cardiovascular health, cholesterol and blood pressure in the future," says star nutritionist .

Then, the nutritionist Álvaro Sánchez and the sports nutrition specialist Paula Beira propose a series of guidelines to carry out a drastic change of weight minimizing the risk of tipping and the possibility of suffering renal alterations or Muscle weakness:

1. The increase in calories (if you have to gain weight) or the decrease of the calories ingested (if you have to thin) should be progressive. "If you are looking to gain weight, the ideal is to add between 200 and 300 calories per week. The proportion is the same if you want to lose weight, "Sánchez explains.

2. The nutrients that make up the diet should be balanced. "Having to fatten doesn't mean we have a free way to get up on buns and saturated fats. You have to get fat based on eating proteins and hydrates, "says the nutritionist.

3. The fiber should be introduced little by little in the diet so that the body assimilate it properly.

4. A full monthly analytical and rigorous medical follow-up should be performed.

Despite the ease he has to model his body at will, Christian Bale, tired of changing weight in each filming, promised not to accept jobs again that require him win or lose kilos drastically. However, once again, another irrechazable offer has led him to fatten 18 kilos and shave his head and even eyebrows. This irresistible offer is vice, film by Adam McKay where he gives life to Dick Cheney, vice president of the United States during the term of George W. Bush. The film is in the filming phase and will be released in Spain at the end of 2018.